Exclusive: Rep. Ilhan Omar To Introduce First Bill To Block U.S. Weapons For Israel Since Gaza War Began

Akbar Shahid Ahmed
Updated Mon, November 13, 2023 

Rep. Ilhan Omar (D-Minn.) will this week introduce legislation to disapprove of a multimillion-dollar package of bomb equipment for Israel proposed by the Biden administration, a source familiar with her plans told HuffPost ― posing the first congressional challenge to the U.S.’s policy of uninterrupted and expanding military support for Israel amid its deadly campaign in Gaza.

Omar will by Wednesday file a bill known as a “resolution of disapproval” targeting a $320 million sale of gear for precision guidance kits for bombs, the source said, likely with a group of fellow Democratic lawmakers as co-sponsors. If the House of Representatives and the Senate both pass such a resolution, the administration would not be able to transfer the bomb equipment unless President Joe Biden vetoed the bill.

A spokesperson for Omar did not immediately provide comment for this story.

The Biden administration and Israel agreed on the arms deal earlier this year ― before the Gaza-based Palestinian militant group Hamas sparked the current fighting with a brutal attack inside Israel on Oct. 7 ― and Congress did not express objections then. But on Oct. 31, after Israel’s offensive in Gaza had already killed thousands, the administration told Congress it would begin transferring the gear, which helps makes bombs more advanced, The Wall Street Journal revealed.

For now, there is no guarantee Omar’s bill would come up for a vote: That depends on the House Foreign Affairs Committee, which would need to pass it before it is considered by the full House. Committee chair Mike McCaul (R-Texas) and other Republicans, who control a majority in the House, overwhelmingly back military aid to Israel.

If a senator introduced a similar bill, however, that would set up an automatic vote in the upper chamber. Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) used the process to try to force a Senate vote on aid to Israel during the country’s last large-scale campaign in Gaza, in 2021.

Josh Paul, a former State Department official who resigned over Biden’s Gaza policy, praised Omar’s move as a significant step.

“It is an important statement that there are those in the U.S. who care about this issue and are not willing to simply stand by,” Paul told HuffPost. The bomb equipment represents “the sort of capability Israel has been using for the last month to devastate Gaza.”

Paul, who previously oversaw discussions between Congress and the State Department over arms sales, described the attempt as “an uphill battle.”

“It marks the beginning, perhaps, of the turning of a tide that will take a long time to turn,” he said.

Some Capitol Hill observers expect additional resolutions in the coming days against various aspects of U.S. military support for Israel. Those bills would also face long odds given legislators’ broad bipartisan commitment to the country. Yet there are some indications lawmakers want to be clear they are not providing a blank check: Last week, Rep. Gregory Meeks (D-N.Y.), the ranking Democrats on the House Foreign Affairs Committee, told The Washington Post he opposes the Biden administration’s bid to bypass normal oversight to rush additional weapons to Israel.

Former State Department lawyer Brian Finucane reacted to the news on X by saying it could be challenging for Biden to defend the sale Omar is targeting given statements from his aides that they are not assessing whether Israel is following the laws of war in its Gaza operation.

Biden administration officials say they expect Israel to uphold international norms in its conduct, arguing it can punish Hamas without disproportionately harming civilians, but they have not said there would be any consequences for the U.S. partner if it fails to do so. Human rights groups have suggested Israel is committing war crimes in its offensive.

Many U.S. officials, including counterterrorism experts and State Department personnel, are privately frustrated by the president’s unwillingness to do more to urge Israeli restraint, saying that undermines American values and risks long-term blowback from observers who are angry over the conflict.

The Israeli campaign has now killed more than 11,000 Gazans ― one out of every 200 people in the region. Since Oct. 7, more than 1,200 Israelis have also died, and more than 200 are still being held hostage by Hamas.

More Than 400 U.S. Officials Sign Letter Protesting Biden’s Israel Policy

Maria Abi-Habib, Michael Crowley and Edward Wong

The New York Times
Tue, November 14, 2023 

President Joe Biden and Secretary of State Anthony Blinken

 during a visit to Israel, Oct. 18, 2023.

 (Kenny Holston/The New York Times)

More than 400 political appointees and staff members representing some 40 government agencies sent a letter to President Joe Biden on Tuesday protesting his support of Israel in its war in the Gaza Strip.

The letter, part of growing internal dissent over the administration’s support of the war, calls on the president to seek an immediate cease-fire in Gaza and to push Israel to allow humanitarian aid into the territory. It is the latest of several protest letters from officials throughout the Biden administration, including three internal memos to Secretary of State Antony Blinken signed by dozens of State Department employees as well as an open letter signed by more than 1,000 employees of the U.S. Agency for International Development.

The signatories of the letter submitted Tuesday and the one circulating among employees of the U.S. Agency for International Development are anonymous, the USAID letter explains, out of “concern for our personal safety and risk of potentially losing our jobs.” The signatories of the State Department dissent cables must disclose their names, but those cables have not been released publicly.

Although the Biden administration has recently started voicing concern over the high numbers of Palestinian civilians killed while urging Israel to show restraint, that budding criticism does not appear to be placating many in the U.S. government.

The letter, a copy of which was reviewed by The New York Times, began by denouncing the Oct. 7 attacks by Hamas, then urged Biden to stop the bloodshed caused by Israel’s retaliatory military campaign in Gaza.

“We call on President Biden to urgently demand a cease-fire; and to call for de-escalation of the current conflict by securing the immediate release of the Israeli hostages and arbitrarily detained Palestinians; the restoration of water, fuel, electricity and other basic services; and the passage of adequate humanitarian aid to the Gaza Strip,” the letter states.

Two political appointees who helped organize the letter to Biden said the majority of the signatories are political appointees of various faiths who work throughout government, from the National Security Council to the FBI and the Justice Department.

Some of the signatories helped Biden get elected in 2020 and said in interviews they were concerned that the administration’s support of Israel’s war in Gaza clashed with Democratic voters’ stance on the issue.

“The overwhelming majority of Americans support a cease-fire,” the letter states, linking to a poll from October that shows that 66% of Americans, including 80% of Democrats, believe the United States should put pressure on Israel for a cease-fire.

“Furthermore, Americans do not want the U.S. military to be drawn into another costly and senseless war in the Middle East.”

Israel launched a ground invasion last month in Gaza in response to bloody attacks by Hamas on Oct. 7 that killed about 1,200 people, according to the Israeli government. So far, more than 11,000 Palestinians have been killed in Israel’s military offensive, according to Gaza’s Health Ministry.

Biden and Blinken, like Israel’s leadership, say they oppose a cease-fire — a long-term halt in fighting, typically accompanied by political negotiations — on the grounds that it would spare Hamas and allow it to reconstitute for future attacks. They have instead called for “pauses,” short interruptions in the fighting lasting perhaps a few hours, to allow for clearly defined humanitarian missions such as aid delivery into Gaza and the release of Israeli hostages held by Hamas. U.S. officials say they have done more than any other nation to ensure that at least some aid enters Gaza.

The two people who helped organize the letter to Biden said they had agreed to serve the administration because the president stressed that he wanted a government that was more representative of American voters. But, they said, their concerns and those of other political appointees have largely been dismissed.

Some U.S. officials said privately that while senior officials welcome disagreement, government workers must understand and accept that they will not always agree with U.S. policy. The dissent over Gaza reflects a generational divide and comes mostly from employees in their 20s and 30s, the officials said — though many older people have also signed dissenting documents, according to people who have collected signatures.

The letters of protest come after a contentious meeting on Oct. 23 at the Eisenhower Executive Office Building, where 70 Muslim and Arab political appointees gathered with senior Biden administration officials, including Jeffrey Zients, the chief of staff, and Doug Emhoff, the husband of Vice President Kamala Harris.

The meeting started with a general question: How many of the appointees have faced pressure from family or friends to resign over the Biden administration’s support of Israel in the conflict? Dozens of hands shot up, according to one attendee and another who was briefed about the meeting.

Senior administration officials opened the floor to take questions and comments. Some attendees cried as they demanded that the administration call for a cease-fire, curb weapons shipments to the Israeli military and stop disregarding Palestinian civilian casualties in the Gaza Strip.

The State Department memos to Blinken were cables sent internally, through what is known as the dissent channel. The channel was created during the Vietnam War to encourage department employees to share disagreements with official policy. Under State Department rules, dissenters are protected from retaliation.

On Monday, Blinken responded to the internal dissent in a message emailed to department employees. “I know that for many of you, the suffering caused by this crisis is taking a profound personal toll,” he wrote, adding that he was aware that “some people in the department may disagree with approaches we are taking or have views on what we can do better.”

He added: “We’re listening: What you share is informing our policy and our messages.”

c.2023 The New York Times Company

Hundreds of Biden Appointees Send Him Letter Demanding Gaza Cease-Fire

Nikki McCann Ramirez

Rolling Stone
Tue, November 14, 2023


Hundreds of political appointees and government staffers representing over 40 U.S. agencies signed a letter to the Biden administration calling for a cease-fire in the Gaza Strip.

According to The New York Times, which reviewed a copy of the letter, more than 400 individuals anonymously signed on to Tuesday’s missive demanding the president’s administration call more forcefully for de-escalation in the conflict between Israel and Hamas in Gaza. Israel’s retaliatory siege against Gaza following the Oct. 7 terrorist attacks by Hamas, which killed 1,400 Israelis, has now killed more than 11,000 Palestinians.

The disproportionate death toll, forced migrations, and ongoing Israeli blockade against humanitarian aid entering the Gaza Strip have fueled accusations of ethnic cleansing by Israel in the Palestinian territory they’ve controlled for decades. It has all come with the backing of the U.S. government.

The letter cites popular American support for a cease-fire, and calls on Biden to “urgently demand a cease-fire; and to call for de-escalation of the current conflict by securing the immediate release of the Israeli hostages and arbitrarily detained Palestinians; the restoration of water, fuel, electricity and other basic services; and the passage of adequate humanitarian aid to the Gaza Strip.”

Biden and Secretary of State Antony Blinken have both rejected calls for a cease-fire, instead touting their support for periodic humanitarian pauses in the shelling of Gaza. On Monday, Blinken responded to three State Department “dissent” cables raising objections to the administration’s virtually unwavering support for Israel by telling department staff that he and his office were “listening.”

It’s done little to appease critics. Blinken’s testimony before the Senate Appropriations Committee in late October was repeatedly interrupted by protesters raising hands stained with red paint to signify the blood of Palestinians. On Monday, Palestinian residents of Gaza, their families, and human rights organizations sued Biden, Blinken, and Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin on grounds that they have failed in “their duty to prevent, and not further, the unfolding genocide of Palestinian people in Gaza.”

The lawsuit, filed in California federal court, accuses American government officials of a “breach of U.S. responsibilities under customary international law, as codified in the Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide (‘Genocide Convention), Dec. 9, 1948.” The suit seeks an order requiring the Biden administration to take all measures within its power to exert its influence over Israel in seeking an end to the bombing of Gaza, the prevention of forced expulsion of Gaza’s residents, and an injunction against continued military aid to Israel.

“For the past 38 days, the world has watched senior Israeli officials use dehumanizing language in connection with their expressed intent to destroy and displace Palestinians in Gaza while imposing an unrelenting siege, and intentionally depriving Palestinians the conditions of life necessary for human survival,” the lawsuit reads. “The United States has been obligated, from the time it learned of the specter of a genocide of the Palestinian people, to exercise its clear and considerable influence on Israel to prevent this grave crime from unfolding.”

Calls for a cease-fire are also brewing on Capitol Hill. Earlier this month, more than 100 congressional staffers staged a walkout protest urging their employers to endorse a cease-fire. In recent polling by Data for Progress, 66 percent of Americans support a cease-fire, compared to only 4 percent of House representatives in Congress.

One of the most prominent voices in government speaking in support of a cease-fire is Rep. Rashida Tlaib (D-Mich.), the only Palestinian-American currently serving in Congress. Tlaib was censured by House Republicans earlier this month in a bad-faith rebuke of her support for Palestinian welfare. In a statement responding to her censure, Tlaib made clear that she would not stop speaking out on the matter. “A majority of Americans support a ceasefire,” she wrote, “but this Congress isn’t listening to their voices.”


Biden officials rebel against president on Israel-Hamas war, sign dissent letter

Anders Hagstrom

Fox News
Tue, November 14, 2023 

Four hundred government officials from 40 departments and agencies within President Biden's administration signed a letter opposing the president's handling of the Israel-Hamas war and demanded a cease-fire.

The Tuesday letter, first reported by the New York Times, includes officials from the State Department, White House, National Security Council and the Justice Department. The signatories of the letter remained anonymous to protect against professional retaliation.

"We call on President Biden to urgently demand a cease-fire; and to call for de-escalation of the current conflict by securing the immediate release of the Israeli hostages and arbitrarily detained Palestinians; the restoration of water, fuel, electricity and other basic services; and the passage of adequate humanitarian aid to the Gaza Strip," the letter reads, in part.

Biden and other Western leaders have pushed back on calls for a cease-fire in Gaza, arguing it would only serve to benefit Hamas terrorists. Biden's administration has instead pushed for humanitarian pauses in the fighting, which Israel has agreed to.

HAMAS TELLS NY TIMES IT HOPES WAR WITH ISRAEL IS ‘PERMANENT,’ PAPER SAYS HAMAS NOT INTERESTED IN GOVERNING

Four hundred government officials from 40 departments and agencies within President Biden's administration signed a letter opposing the president's handling of the Israel-Hamas war and demanding a cease-fire.

The White House has yet to respond to the letter.

So far, French President Emmanuel Macron is the only major Western leader to call on Israel to implement a cease-fire. He later clarified his remarks on Monday, however, saying he still believed Israel has a right to defend itself.

The disagreement within Biden's administration mirrors friction within the Democratic Party regarding the Israel-Hamas conflict. Several radical progressives within Biden's party have decried Israel as an "apartheid state" and argue the war in Gaza is a "genocide" against Palestinians.

The disagreement within the Biden administration mirrors friction within the Democratic Party regarding the Israel-Hamas conflict. Several radical progressives within Biden's party have decried Israel as an "apartheid state" and argue the war in Gaza is a "genocide" against Palestinians.

Rep. Rashida Tlaib, D-Mich., faced a public rebuke from the House of Representatives for her comments on Israel last week.

Israel's war against Hamas is coming to a head this week as Israeli forces surround Al-Shifa Hospital, the largest medical facility in the Gaza Strip. Israel says Hamas has entrenched its headquarters beneath the hospital.

Biden administration staff sign open letter demanding cease-fire in Israel-Hamas war

Allie Raffa and Summer Concepcion

NBC
Tue, November 14, 2023 

Andrew Harnik

More than 400 employees of President Joe Biden's administration have signed an open letter demanding he pursue a cease-fire in the Israel-Hamas war that has killed thousands of civilians thus far.

“We represent a coalition of Biden-Harris Administration political appointees and civil servants, positioned across the domestic and foreign policy spheres, working in federal agencies, departments, independent agencies, and the White House,” the letter, released Tuesday, begins.

“We call on President Biden to urgently demand a ceasefire; and to call for de-escalation of the current conflict by securing the immediate release of the Israeli hostages and arbitrarily detained Palestinians; the restoration of water, fuel, electricity and other basic services; and the passage of adequate humanitarian aid to the Gaza strip,” it continued.

The letter says the signatories represent various backgrounds and faiths and work in more than 30 departments and agencies.

Two administration staff members who led outreach efforts for the letter told NBC News that since the letter was first circulated about two weeks ago, it has gained the signatures of senior and low-level administration employees working across the federal government and in multiple countries. They include staff in the departments of Commerce, Defense, Interior, Homeland Security and the Executive Office of the President, among other agencies.

The two staff members, who are political appointees, asked to remain anonymous out of concern about retaliation for speaking out against the administration’s position. They said those who signed the letter also remained anonymous out of concern for their job security and personal safety.

The White House did not immediately respond to NBC News’ request for comment.

The letter is the latest addition to growing calls on the Biden administration to demand a cease-fire and reassess its handling of Israel’s war with Hamas.

Since the war began after Hamas' brutal attack on Israel on Oct. 7, several efforts have launched from within the government to push for the de-escalation of the conflict, including letters from hundreds of Biden's former 2020 campaign staff and Muslim and Jewish congressional employees. The congressional staff urged Congress to support a cease-fire in light of “antisemitism, anti-Muslim, and anti-Palestinian sentiment on the rise nationwide.”

“It’s unfortunate that we’re at this point," one of the Biden administration staff members told NBC News. "Having hundreds and thousands of people come together within this administration and within Congress and say we are calling for a cease-fire, something that’s so basic to just end human suffering.”

The two are among what they said are many signatories with family and friends in Gaza, the West Bank and Israel.

“Our loved ones are in imminent danger and every single day, waking up and not knowing what’s going to happen is absolute hell,” one staffer told NBC News. The dissonance "of going to work every day and feeling like you are a part of something that is actively harming people you love was expressed by so many people involved in this.”

The staffers told NBC that based on what they’ve experienced personally and heard from colleagues in the White House and across several government agencies, they believe there is a lack of direction of how staffers are supposed to talk about Israel’s war with Hamas.

“Some agencies have had specific meetings about this … and in some places it has been completely taboo to even talk about this,” one said. “I’ve heard it expressed among staffers of all levels that they feel a lack of guidance for how to talk about this, how to manage people suffering because of this."

"A lot of people feel quite alone and frustrated,” the staffer added.

Both described a disconnect between what is coming out of the senior levels of the administration and what they and their colleagues are feeling.

“A lot of us are political appointees who serve at the pleasure of the president, a lot of us came from his campaign,” one staffer said. “So there’s this uneasy feeling of not agreeing with what we’re working on.”

More than 50 employees of the Democratic National Committee, which handles much of Biden’s campaign fundraising efforts, anonymously signed an open letter this month urging their leadership to demand that Biden seek a cease-fire as the war between Israel and Hamas rages on.

Amid internal and external criticism over Biden’s response to the war, the administration has ramped up outreach to Arab, Palestinian and Muslim Americans in hopes of explaining its approach to the conflict, as some aides worried Biden hadn’t shown enough empathy for Palestinian civilians and a Muslim community facing anger at home.

“Efforts to rebuild communities before calling for a ceasefire are going to fall on deaf ears because until that’s being called, nothing will be seen as genuine. There’s no way to escape this conversation,” one of the administration staff members who led their letter’s outreach efforts told NBC. “Every day, you’re going in to work for this administration, then you’re going to look at your phone, you’re going to see the suffering that you kind of feel like you’re causing … a lot of people are no longer comfortable being silent, no longer comfortable being complacent in a way.”

The Biden administration staffer told NBC News that they and some administration colleagues they’ve spoken with have considered resigning because of the administration’s handling of the war up to this point. A veteran State Department official, Josh Paul, resigned last month, citing what he called the U.S.’ “blind support” for Israel in its war with Hamas and its continued “provision of lethal arms to Israel.”

“These are people who really want to serve the public, including people who want to serve the president,” the staffer said. “But it’s going to push people to a breaking point if this continues.”

“There’s been a lot of damage done within the public service community, and I’m not sure how we are going to repair that,” the second staffer said. “The U.S. government has an immense amount of power to change the status quo on the ground and the refusal to acknowledge that feels like a betrayal.”

Both told NBC News they would be watching to see whether Biden acknowledges the March for Israel, a pro-Israel rally expected to draw tens of thousands of people to Washington on Tuesday.

On Nov. 4, thousands of pro-Palestinian protesters marched from Washington’s Freedom Plaza to the White House calling for a cease-fire and an end to the siege on Gaza. Biden was at his Rehoboth Beach, Delaware, home the weekend of the march.

“There is growing dissent across his administration, from people close to him,” one of the administration staffers said. “This is his own alum from the campaign, from within his own administration. … A complete disregard for that would send a really clear and unwelcoming message.”

This article was originally published on NBCNews.com

100 State Department employees sign internal memo accusing Biden of spreading Gaza "misinformation"

Gabriella Ferrigine

SALON
Mon, November 13, 2023

Joe Biden Tom Williams/CQ-Roll Call, Inc via Getty Images


Axios obtained a copy of an internal five-page State Department memo accusing President Joe Biden's administration of "spreading misinformation" pertaining to the Israel-Hamas war. Organized by a junior diplomat, the memo accuses Israel of committing "war crimes" in Gaza and encourages senior U.S. officials to advocate for a ceasefire. The outlet reported that 100 State Department and USAID employees signed off on the memo, which did not offer a specific example for the alleged "misinformation" contained within Biden's speech on Oct 10, three days after the "atrocities committed by Hamas on October 7th."

"We strongly recommend that the (U.S. government) advocate for the release of hostages by both Hamas and (Israel)," the memo stated, also claiming that "thousands" of Palestinians are being held in Israel. Axios reported that the memo largely hones in on Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's counterattack on Hamas in Gaza, which the memo alleges included cutting off all electricity, curbing aid, and carrying out airstrike sieges. "All constitute war crimes and/or crimes against humanity under international law," the memo states. "Yet we have failed to reassess our posture towards Israel. We doubled down on our unwavering military assistance to the (Israeli government) without clear or actionable redlines."

"Members of the White House and (the National Security Council) displayed a clear disregard for the lives of Palestinians, a documented unwillingness to de-escalate, and, even prior to October 7, a reckless lack of strategic foresight," the memo continued. A State Department spokesperson spoke openly about the department's "dissent channel," which has remained in operation since the Vietnam War. The spokesperson said the department is "proud there is an established procedure for employees to articulate policy disagreements directly to the attention of senior department leaders without fear of retribution. We understand — we expect, we appreciate — that different people working in this department have different beliefs about what United States policy should be." Though dissent memos are meant to remain confined to the building, Axios noted that they are leaked to the media on occasion.

State Department: Biden Spreading Misinformation Amid Israel’s War on Gaza

Ellie Quinlan Houghtaling

NEW REPUBLIC
Mon, November 13, 2023


An internal memo floating around the U.S. State Department is urging senior officials to rethink their approach to the Israel-Hamas war, criticizing America’s unwavering support of Israel’s counteroffensive as backing “crimes against humanity.”

The five-page memo, signed by 100 State Department and USAID employees, also accuses President Joe Biden of “spreading misinformation” in his October 10 speech, in which Biden described Hamas’s October 7 massacre as an “act of sheer evil” and likened it to the “worst rampages of ISIS” while unequivocally aligning U.S. military capabilities with Israel.

“Members of the White House and (the National Security Council) displayed a clear disregard for the lives of Palestinians, a documented unwillingness to de-escalate, and, even prior to October 7, a reckless lack of strategic foresight,” the memo said, reported Axios.

The bulk of the memo focuses on condemning Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s assault on Gaza, which has constituted attacking hospitals, cutting off access to water and electricity, limiting humanitarian aid, and displacing 1.6 million Palestinians.

All of these actions, according to the memo, “constitute war crimes and/or crimes against humanity under international law.”

“Yet we have failed to reassess our posture towards Israel,” the memo reads, according to the outlet. “We doubled down on our unwavering military assistance to the (Israeli government) without clear or actionable redlines.”

It’s not the first such memo to be leaked out of the State Department. Last week, another memo blasted the U.S. response to Israel as inappropriate, arguing that supporting the Middle Eastern state’s “settler violence” went “against American values,” reported Politico.

Facing State Dept dissent over Gaza, Blinken tells staff: We're listening

Mon, November 13, 2023 

U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken visits India

By Humeyra Pamuk

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken on Monday moved to address rising criticism within the State Department ranks over the Biden administration's policy on the Israel-Hamas war, as hundreds of U.S. government employees openly and privately have advocated for a ceasefire in Gaza.

At least three cables criticizing the administration's policy have been filed with the Department's internal "dissent channel", which was established during the Vietnam War and allows diplomats to raise concerns about policy anonymously with the Secretary of State, sources familiar with the matter said.

The criticism focuses on President Joe Biden's unwavering support for Israel in the aftermath of the Oct. 7 attacks by Hamas militants that killed 1,200 people, mostly civilians, the deadliest assault in the country's history.

In response, Israel has launched a relentless military campaign on Gaza, killing more than 11,000 Palestinians, according to Gaza's health ministry, unleashing the bloodiest chapter in years in the decades-old Israeli-Palestinian conflict.

Washington has rebuffed calls from Arab and Palestinian leaders and others to call on Israel to halt its assault on the Hamas-controlled Gaza strip, but it has urged for humanitarian pauses to allow more aid in and to evacuate Americans and foreigners.

In an emailed letter to the State Department employees, Blinken, having just returned from a nine-day trip to the Middle East and Asia, acknowledged the emotional toll the conflict has taken on the workforce but also the possible divisions within the ranks over policy.

"I know that for many of you, the suffering caused by this crisis is taking a profound personal toll," Blinken said in the letter obtained by Reuters.

"The anguish that comes with seeing the daily images of babies, children, elderly people, women, and other civilians suffering in this crisis is wrenching. I feel it myself," he said.

"I also know that some people in the Department may disagree with approaches we are taking or have views on what we can do better. We’ve organized forums in Washington to hear from you, and urged managers and teams to have candid discussions at posts around the world precisely so we can hear your feedback and ideas. I’ve asked our senior leadership to keep doing that."

"We’re listening: what you share is informing our policy and our messages."

HuffPost was the first to report on the email.

Blinken's letter comes amid protests in the United States and other countries calling for a ceasefire, and widespread concern among officials over the U.S. response to the Middle East crisis, which has included the public resignation of one State Department official who said he opposed continued lethal assistance to Israel.

More than 500 people who worked on Biden's 2020 election campaign last week published a letter, seen by Reuters, calling for the president to support an immediate ceasefire, and a group of congressional staffers held a vigil on Wednesday at the Capitol demanding a ceasefire, images on social media showed.

While some sources say there has been "deep frustration" among members of working level staff at the State Department, several U.S. officials say, while the Department leadership welcomes a diverse set of voices, it is unlikely to profoundly change Biden's policy.

In a briefing earlier on Monday, Department spokesperson Matthew Miller said Blinken has met with a number of people from different bureaus within the agency to hear what they think about the policy over Israel-Hamas war.

"He encourages people to provide feedback. He encourages people to speak up if they disagree. It doesn’t mean that we’re going to change our policy based on their disagreements," Miller said.

(Reporting by Humeyra Pamuk; Editing by Michael Perry)

LIBERAL COURT
Wisconsin Supreme Court weighs case seeking to end state's school choice programs

DID I MENTION LIBERAL COURT

SCOTT BAUER
November 14, 2023 

MADISON, Wis. (AP) — Supporters of Wisconsin's taxpayer-funded school choice and independent charter school programs urged the state Supreme Court on Tuesday to reject a lawsuit seeking to declare the programs unconstitutional, saying such a move would create chaos for tens of thousands of families with students currently enrolled.

Private schools, parents with students who attend them, advocacy groups and the state chamber of commerce argue in court filings that the 32-year-old program has benefitted families for a generation and the effort to undo it is politically motivated, after the Supreme Court's majority shifted to liberal control earlier this year.

“A mere change in membership should not create an opportunity to challenge precedent,” supporters of school choice programs, being represented by the Wisconsin Institute for Law and Liberty, contend. “A single election is not a mandate to radically change the law.”

The lawsuit was filed two months after the state Supreme Court flipped to 4-3 liberal controlled. With that change, Democrats hope the court will rule in their favor in pending cases seeking to overturn Republican-drawn legislative electoral maps and undo the state’s ban on abortion.

The school choice lawsuit comes after decades of complaints from Democrats who have argued that the program is a drain on resources that would otherwise go to public schools.

The nation's first school choice program began in Milwaukee in 1990. Then seen as an experiment to help low-income students in the state's largest city, the program has expanded statewide and its income restrictions have been loosened, and it served more than 52,000 students at a cost of $444 million in the last school year.

Democrats including Gov. Tony Evers, who previously served as state superintendent of education, have been longtime critics of the program. But Evers this summer agreed to increase spending on the programs as part of a larger education funding package that was also tied to a deal sending more money to Milwaukee and local governments.

The first question for the Wisconsin Supreme Court to decide is whether to take the case directly or first have it work its way through lower courts. The plaintiffs want the high court to take it directly, which would mean a ruling could come in months rather than perhaps years if it had to go through the lower courts.

The lawsuit was brought by several Wisconsin residents and is being funded by the liberal Minocqua Brewing Super PAC. Kirk Bangstad, who owns the Minocqua Brewing Co., is a former Democratic candidate for U.S. House and state Assembly. His brewery produces beer with politically themed names that tout Democrats, such as “Evers Ale,” a nod to the governor

Bangstad's super PAC has funded previous lawsuits targeting Republicans.

The lawsuit asks the court to stop three state officials from continuing the choice programs: Assembly Speaker Robin Vos, Superintendent of Public Instruction Jill Underly and Secretary of the Department of Administration Kathy Blumenfeld.

All three of them faced a Tuesday deadline to file arguments.

The lawsuit argues that the state’s revenue limit and funding mechanism for voucher school programs and charter schools violate the Wisconsin Constitution’s declaration that public funds be spent for public purposes.

It also contends that vouchers defund public schools, do not allow for adequate public oversight and do not hold private schools to the same standards as public schools.

The Wisconsin Supreme Court ruled in 1992 that Milwaukee’s voucher program was legal. But the current lawsuit alleges that as the program has expanded, the situation has dramatically changed.

At the start of last school year, enrollment in choice programs was more than 29,000 in Milwaukee, 3,900 in Racine and 17,000 elsewhere in the state, according to the state Department of Public Instruction. Another 2,200 disabled students received vouchers under a special needs scholarship program.

Ending the programs now would cause “chaos,” for tens of thousands of families, argued 22 parents of voucher-enrolled students, private schools and choice advocacy groups.

The Wisconsin Institute for Law and Liberty, a conservative activist law firm, on Tuesday released a report claiming that if the school choice program ended, the Milwaukee school district would have to open about 17 additional buildings to accommodate the influx of students. Statewide, more than 3,700 teachers would have to be hired in public schools, the report said.

Help Wanted: Cuba's government turns to growing diaspora for investment

OPEN INVESTMENT FUND FOR THE LEFT

November 14, 2023 



HAVANA (Reuters) - Cuba wants to tap its fast-growing overseas population for fresh investment to lift its sinking economy, a top foreign ministry official told Reuters this week, as the communist-run nation looks to overcome its worst downturn in decades.

Food, fuel and medicine shortages have pushed a record number of Cubans to leave their Caribbean island home in the past two years, sapping the nation of resources necessary to jump-start an economy already shackled by the pandemic and stiffened U.S. sanctions.

This migration wave includes many young people and "is having the greatest impact in history in terms of demographics, because of its composition," said Ernesto Soberon, director of Consular Affairs for the Cuban Foreign Ministry.

Soberon told Reuters in a wide-ranging interview in Havana on Monday that the exodus represents a loss but also an opportunity as the government seeks to revive the ailing economy.

Cuban expats have already invested in bed-and-breakfasts, eateries and other activities on the island, but Cuba would like to see more capital flow, he said.

"Today Cubans abroad have no limits on how they can participate in the economic life of their country," he said, referring to restrictions once placed upon them by the government.

Over 400 Cuban citizens living in more than 40 countries arrive on the island this week to discuss Cuba's evolving economy and other issues with the government - the first such conversations between Cuba and its ballooning diaspora in nearly two decades.

The conference is expected to attract Cubans living off island but with favorable views of their home country, including businesspeople, economists, and members of foreign resident associations.

The landscape has changed dramatically since the last time the two groups formally met in 2004, under former leader Fidel Castro. Around 2.5 million Cubans and their descendents now live off the island, Soberon said.

Cuba in 2021 lifted a ban on private enterprise, considered a scourge under Castro. And the island's government, which once limited the travel of its citizens, now allows most to come and go freely, though it still restricts dissidents, athletes and some others.

Some things, however, have not changed, said Soberon, who said the Cold War-era U.S. embargo has only stiffened over the years, with sanctions complicating the financial transfers needed to start and run a business.

"You can't just go back and forth with a bag full of cash," he said.

The administration of U.S President Joe Biden has shown tepid support for small business on the island but says Cuba must improve its human rights record before it grants concessions. It stopped short recently of announcing expected new measures to ease the flow of capital. In addition, some Cuban Americans have little appetite for working with Cuba's government.

Soberon said the conference on Nov. 18 and 19 would review mechanisms already in place, like remittances, that have already begun to serve as seed capital for small businesses for Cubans on the island.

"That will ultimately raise their standard of living so that they want to spend their lives here in Cuba and not abroad," he said.

(Reporting by Dave Sherwood, Editing by Rosalba O'Brien)

NICE TRY GUYS

Meta, Alphabet, ByteDance, Snap must face social media addiction lawsuits

JONATHAN STEMPEL AND NATE RAYMOND
November 14, 2023 



(Reuters) - A federal judge on Tuesday rejected efforts by major social media companies to dismiss nationwide litigation accusing them of illegally enticing and then addicting millions of children to their platforms, damaging their mental health.

U.S. District Judge Yvonne Gonzalez Rogers in Oakland, California, ruled against Alphabet, which operates Google and YouTube; Meta Platforms, which operates Facebook and Instagram; ByteDance, which operates TikTok; and Snap, which operates Snapchat.

The decision covers hundreds of lawsuits filed on behalf of individual children who allegedly suffered negative physical, mental and emotional health effects from social media use including anxiety, depression, and occasionally suicide.

The litigation seeks, among other remedies, damages and a halt to the defendants' alleged wrongful practices.

More than 140 school districts have filed similar lawsuits against the industry, and 42 states plus the District of Columbia last month sued Meta for youth addiction to its social media platforms.

The companies did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

The plaintiffs' lead lawyers - Lexi Hazam, Previn Warren and Chris Seeger - in a joint statement called the ruling "a significant victory for the families that have been harmed by the dangers of social media."

In her 52-page ruling, Rogers rejected arguments that the companies were immune from being sued under the U.S. Constitution's First Amendment and a provision of the federal Communications Decency Act that shields internet companies from third-party actions.

The companies said that provision, Section 230, provides immunity from liability for anything users publish on their platforms, and required the dismissal of all claims.

But Rogers said the plaintiffs' claims were broader than just focusing on third-party content, and the defendants did not address why they should not be liable for providing defective parental controls.

She cited as an example allegations that companies could have used age-verification tools to warn parents when their children were online.

"Accordingly, they pose a plausible theory under which failure to validly verify user age harms users that is distinct from harm caused by consumption of third-party content on defendants' platforms," Rogers wrote.

The judge, though, dismissed some claims that the defendants' platforms were defectively designed.

(Reporting by Jonathan Stempel in New York and Nate Raymond in Boston; Editing by Chizu Nomiyama and Matthew Lewis)

DON'T GO INTO BACKCOUNTRY ALONE
Missing Colorado hiker's dog found alive, waiting by owner's body after months in wilderness

AMARIS ENCINAS, USA TODAY
November 13, 2023 

Authorities conduced an aerial search in order to find Rich Moore, 71, and Jack Russell Terrier Finney, who were spotted by a hunter on Oct. 30. They had been missing for nearly three months.

A Colorado hiker who was missing for months was found dead in late October, but his 14-year-old Jack Russell terrier was found alive and waiting by the hiker's side, according to reports from the area.

A hunter came across the body of 71-year-old Rich Moore in the Lower Blanco drainage basin on Oct. 30, according to reporting by 9News in Colorado. And Moore's white Jack Russell terrier, Finney, was found alive nearby.

A flight crew headed out later that afternoon to find a suitable landing zone to recover the body but were unable to recover Moore and his dog until the next day.

After locating the pair, they were flown off the mountain by a search and rescue team.

Finney was reunited with her family after examination and treatment at a local animal hospital, according to the affiliate.

Delinda Vanne-Brightyn of Taos Search and Rescue, an agency that helped participate in the search for Moore noted how difficult it was to get to their location.

"We searched from just under the peak-top and directly West, searching down the mountain toward where his car was located. Winds were directly from the West/Soutwest. It was so steep, we were inserted in by a helicopter. He was found 2.5 miles East of the mountain-top beneath where we were inserted," according to the agency's Facebook page.

Taos Search and Rescue also extended their condolences to the family but were glad the family was able to gain some closure as well as bring their dog back home.
When were Rich Moore and his pup first reported missing?

The duo was first reported missing on the evening of Aug. 19 in the Blackhead Peak area, a rugged mountain peak east of Pagosa Springs, a Colorado town 35 miles north of the New Mexico border. They had failed to return from a hike up 12,500-foot mountain's peak, DogTime reported.

Authorities conducted an extensive search of the area, spending almost 2,000 hours looking for Moore and his pup.

Moore’s cause of death is currently unknown, but the Archuleta County Sheriff’s Office does not suspect a crime has been committed.

More: Going for a day hike? How to prepare, what to bring

IDIOT

Footprints in the snow lead rescuers to Rocky Mountains hiker wearing a cotton hoodie with no way to warm themselves

CHRIS BOYETTE, CNN
November 14, 2023 

From Chaffee County Search and Rescue North


A hiker who was unprepared for conditions at over 13,000 feet up in the Colorado Rockies was rescued when searchers followed footprints in freshly fallen snow to find them “alive but very hypothermic,” rescuers said.

“When inclement weather moved in the hiker found themself unprepared; out of water, with no food, wearing only a cotton hoodie and no way to warm themselves,” Chaffee County Search and Rescue North said in a news release.

“With darkness approaching and hypothermia setting in the individual decided, rather than take the same way down the best plan was to bail down an avalanche chute to try to get to a road.”

An avalanche chute is a natural path down a slope created by frequent avalanches.

About 25 search and rescue team members deployed to search for the hiker as a severe snowstorm blew in, according to the news release.

Around 12:42 a.m. Thursday, a team member spotted footprints in 6 to 8 inches of freshly fallen snow, and began to follow them, according to the news release.

“This team continued to follow the footprints until they came upon an unusual looking rock” at approximately 2 a.m., the release said. “Upon further investigation it was determined it was not a rock but the subject sitting upright in a fetal position covered in snow.”

The hiker was “alive but very hypothermic,” and rescuers spent three hours warming them up before starting the process of getting them down the gully, the search and rescue team said.

Initially, ropes were used to lower the hiker one section at a time until they said they thought they could walk and made their own way down the remaining stretch of the slope to an ambulance waiting to check them out, the rescue team said.

Chaffee County is in central Colorado on the eastern slope of the Rocky Mountains near the Continental Divide.

Non-existent trail removed from Google Maps after another rescue in Vancouver's North Shore mountains


CBC
Mon, November 13, 2023 

North Shore Rescue posted photos of a rescue volunteer on the steep north side of Mount Fromme who helped save a hiker who followed a non-existent trail marked on Google Maps. (North Shore Rescue - image credit)

A search-and-rescue organization says it has finally been successful in getting Google to remove a non-existent trail from its Maps app, after crew members were again called to pull a stranded hiker out of dangerous terrain in the North Shore mountains near Vancouver.

Both helicopter and rope teams with North Shore Rescue (NSR) were needed to save the male hiker who became stranded on the non-existent trail on the north side of Mount Fromme on Nov. 4.

NSR said it made a similar helicopter rescue in the same area on Sept. 20.

Google Maps displayed the non-existent trail as heading north from the summit of Mount Fromme — which is located just east of the popular ski hill of Grouse Mountain — toward the vicinity of Kennedy Falls, in what NSR describes as "extremely steep and dangerous terrain."

"This morning NSR received word that our Google Map request has been processed and the non-existent trail north of Fromme has been deleted," said NSR in a social media post.

"Thanks to Google for the update, and extra special thanks to the efforts of everyone further to our post this weekend!"

The fake trail displayed by Google Maps has now been removed, according to North Shore Rescue.

The fake trail displayed by Google Maps, circled and crossed out in this screengrab, has now been removed, according to North Shore Rescue. (North Shore Rescue/Google Maps)

NSR said one week ago it had contacted Google about the problem but had not received a response. Volunteers even went to the trouble recently of posting signs in the area warning about the danger.

A third hiker fell to his death in the same area two years ago.

In last week's rescue, NSR said crews had to be lowered into an area approximately 100 metres below the hiker because of low cloud limiting how high the helicopter could fly. Rescuers then belayed up to the hiker, who was put in a harness and taken down to a location where the helicopter could hoist him out.

CBC News has contacted Google for comment.

A North Shore Rescue volunteer uses a belay line to help save a man who became stranded on Mount Fromme after following a trail marked on Google Maps that does not exist.

A North Shore Rescue volunteer uses a belay line to get to a hiker stranded on Mount Fromme. (North Shore Rescue)

According to B.C. Search and Rescue Association senior manager Dwight Yochim, the fake trail has been a concern for a while.

"On Google Maps someone put a trail where there wasn't a trail," Yochim said on the CBC's The Early Edition.

"So, people looking for ways to get up to various mountains [that] had never taken that trail, off they go. And it's a major bushwhack with extremely steep, dangerous areas that just leads people into trouble."

Yochim said the lesson is that Google Maps, while being a good tool for finding a coffee shop, should not be used for hiking.

He suggests hikers who use their phone to navigate should consider more accurate apps such as AllTrails, Gaia or Strava. His top recommendation, however, is using reliable, old-school options.

"I really like the map and compass. My map has never run out of batteries," said Yochim, whose recommendation was echoed by NSR.

"Of course, if you do use your phone for navigation... be sure to carry a spare, charged external battery, as mapping programs can quickly drain your phone's battery, especially in the cold," the organization said on social media.

NOBODY IS BUYING IPHONES
Huawei sales up 83%, boosting China's October smartphone sales

YELIN MO AND BRENDA GOH
November 14, 2023 



By Yelin Mo and Brenda Goh

BEIJING (Reuters) - Strong sales growth at Huawei helped power an 11% rise in China's total smartphone shipments in October, data from research firm Counterpoint showed on Tuesday, indicating signs of recovery in its lagging mobile market.

Huawei was a major contributor to the average year-on-year growth in the first four weeks of October, with its sales surging 83%, a note from the firm showed.

According to the Counterpoint data, Xiaomi also saw a 33% increase in smartphone sales in October. It did not provide specifics around Apple's performance in the period. In August, Huawei launched its Mate 60 smartphone series powered by what analysts said are a self-developed advanced chip, seen by some analysts as an answer to U.S. sanctions aimed at halting shipments of some chips to China.

"The clear standout in October has been Huawei, with its turnaround on the back of its Mate 60 series devices. Growth has been stellar," said Counterpoint China analyst Archie Zhang

"Demand continues to be high double-digits and we’re also seeing a halo effect, with other models from the vendor performing well."

However, Counterpoint said there could be lingering bottlenecks for Huawei as it may still experience certain production issues.

"Huawei’s ability to scale up to this new normal will be a major determinant not just for their own growth, but for the broader market,” said Ivan Lam, senior Counterpoint analyst.

China's smartphone market has seen sales fall over several quarters, with a 3% drop in the quarter ending June, according to Counterpoint.

Analysts expect the market may be poised for a rebound, with research firm IDC predicting unspecified year-on-year sales growth in the fourth quarter after ten consecutive quarters of falling shipments.

(Reporting by Yelin Mo and Brenda Goh; Editing by Jan Harvey)

Spain to provide bodyguards for fugitive Catalan Puigdemont amid amnesty row

November 14, 2023



MADRID (Reuters) - Spain is expected to approve a request to provide bodyguards for fugitive Catalan leader Carles Puigdemont days after he reached an agreement to back acting Socialist Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez's bid for another term in exchange for an amnesty, a government minister said on Tuesday.

Tensions are running high in Spain over a controversial amnesty law agreed with Puigdemont's party Junts that will exculpate hundreds of politicians and activists involved in an attempt to separate Catalonia from Spain that peaked in 2017.

Puigdemont, who is the subject of an extradition order for leading the failed attempt, is likely to be the most high profile beneficiary of the amnesty law, a draft of which was registered in parliament on Monday.

His office first filed a request for "protection and security" from the authorities in 2018 and has habitually refiled it without success.

On November 6, in a letter seen by Reuters, Puigdemont's office argued that there had been "an increase in the level of danger and risk". His spokesperson declined to provide further details.

Cabinet Minister Felix Bolanos said the request was likely to be approved, saying every Spanish citizen had a right to safety "no matter how many ideological differences there may be", in a radio interview on RAC1, a Catalan-language radio station.

Opposition leader Alberto Nunez Feijoo, of the centre-right People's Party that is leading protests against the amnesty, said the security agreement was "surprising".

"(Puigdemont) wields enormous power," he told reporters. "He's gone from having an arrest warrant for him to be handed over to the Spanish police to being escorted by the Spanish police."

Puigdemont, who has been living in exile in Waterloo, Belgium since 2017, has been the target of taunts and insults when confronted by Spaniards who see him as the leader of an attempted coup.

In 2018, he was approached in a shopping centre in Copenhagen by a young Spaniard who asked him to kiss the Spanish flag. Puigdemont agreed, saying he had "no problem" doing so.

Having secured Junts' backing, Sanchez, in power since 2018, looks assured of winning a new term in an investiture vote on Thursday. The prospect of amnesty has brought thousands of opponents to the streets for 12 days in a row.

(Reporting by Charlie Devereux and Joan Faus, additional reporting Emma Pinedo, editing by Aislinn Laing)

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